Why we are still in Tucson, my CA DMV rant

If you've opened this, you must be in the mood for a rant, I warned you and you opened it...so here goes. 

First off, I freely admit that Ken and I could have saved ourselves all of this trouble by requesting a copy of the title for our quad in the months before we left California. We made some assumptions about technology, connectedness and efficiency that unfortunately came nowhere close to reality, but I digress. That happens when I'm not in my right mind.

As you may be aware, we are on our way to Guatemala. When we arrived in Tucson, we went to the AZ DMV the next day on the 15th to register our vehicles at Ken's parents address. We had to have the title in our names for all 3 of our vehicles (Fj Cruiser, quad, trailer) to cross the border. The experience was REALLY different than I expected - we were in and out of emissions testing, license photo and issue, and in-depth meeting with the registration station in 45 minutes. They are a "title holding" state, so we got the title to our new trailer immediately. The guy that sold us the FJ has two names (one Chinese) so we were told we needed him to send us a notarized affidavit that the names both belong to him and we could come back and get that title immediately.

However, at some point we lost the title to our quad. Here’s where the overly optimistic assumptions come into play. Having the VIN and sticker for the vehicle, the thought was that the AZ DMV could simply enter the VIN and through a nationally connected system, see that we were the owners and re-issue the title in AZ. Nope. Somehow, law enforcement can track vehicles across state lines and we all know government seems to know everything about everything about us these days….except if two DMVs need to share information. That takes one issuing a piece a paper and physically sending it to the other.

Not ideal, but okay. I call CA DMV (which Google for some reason identifies as North Carolina DMV when you dial the number– try it) and a very helpful gentleman tells me not to pay attention to the website “rush title” process, that they just moved it to a new building, and the website hasn’t updated yet. He says if I send it overnight, it will take up to three days to process and if I include an overnight envelope, they will send it right back. So I download and fill out the paperwork, send an extra $15 for “rush title” and we sent it through UPS.

Using the tracking number, we saw that they accepted the paperwork on Monday the 19^th at 9 a.m. Great, so they have it and are working on it. Fast forward to Friday the 23^rd and the multiple times each day in between we checked the return envelope tracking number and the disappointment of realizing it hasn’t been shipped back yet.  Ken called the CA DMV and discovered that  A) they couldn’t track where it was in processing or estimate when it would be sent back and B) the process was actually 8-10 days. Yowie.

Plan B, we set up a Power of Attorney with a friend in Sacramento and she was in Merced with her husband, so she went into the Merced DMV office to inquire about our title and/or re-submit if it was lost somewhere. She had good things to say about how nicely they said it, but essentially even in person, there was no way to get the title the same day. They couldn’t say where the original request might be, but offered the helpful tip that if the check had not yet been cashed, they haven’t even started working on it. (It had not been cashed.) They would certainly takes the forms and money again, but they would then just send to the Sacramento office (the only place they work on titles) and start the 8-10 days again. Grrrrrr. We didn’t re-submit.

On Tuesday, May 27^th, we got a call from them. Oh happy day!! We were really excited, things were moving. For some reason, even though the VIN and sticker were on the paperwork, they wanted to clarify that we were asking for the quad title, not the title for the scooter we own which shares a common brand. Whatever, at least we knew it was being worked on. After clearing it up for them, we were sure the title would be in our hands the next day.

Today is Thursday, the 29^th. The check cleared!!! Fingers crossed.

The "Pre-Trip"

First off...YYYYYYEEESSSS!!!!! Houston, we FINALLY have lift-off!!!

This past Sunday afternoon we had enough of our affairs in order to take our show on the road. The only reason we are able to that is with the help of three people. Kathy Young is a dear friend and former co-worker who we have hired to do some work with our company and is also helping us out with some personal transition-to-Guatemala stuff. My dad has given up a room at his place to give us a local launching point when we are back in California for business. My sister Roberta is a rock star by jumping in and getting the house to a place it is ready to rent soon. So, without these three people, no way we are launched yet.

On to the trip...

Day 1: Sunday, May 11
FJ Odometer start: 114,300
Start time: 3 p.m.
Travel path: Sacramento down I-5 South  to I-10 East to Rancho Cucamonga/Ontario Aloft Hotel

We were really excited to get on the road and although not everything was done, felt at peace that our people in Sacramento could handle whatever we couldn't accomplish in Tucson or from the road. Ken had some work to get done while we were driving, so he got his FJ internet system set up and was typing away/talking away while I drove.

One of our cats, Osa (grey), loves to travel, but the other, Belle (brown) is a demon in the car. About an hour before we left, I tried to squish a kitty xanax into a anti-hairball treat that Belle likes, but it

crumbled up and she really only consumed about 1/4 of it. Not to worry though, that 1/4 was enough to send her to a happy place and she was actually purring while exploring and laying around the impressive kitty suite Ken put together for them.

I'll do a separate post on their digs when I get a chance, but just know that they are living the high life with access to food, water, private kitty box, several lounging spots near windows and a couple right above us to see the road. ahhh....to be a cat.

Got a little sleepy around 6ish in the middle of Cali, but turned up some music and got through it. We considered driving all the way through to AZ, but about 10 decided it made sense to pull over at a hotel. We're a big fan of the Sheraton Four Points hotels because they are consistently relatively nice and pet-friendly. However, the one in Ontario was full with a biker convention of all things...like stepping into the set of Sons of Anarchy (yay!) so we had to look elsewhere.

Apparently, there is a related line of hotels called "Aloft" that is like Sheraton's younger, hipper brother.

Very slick rooms, just Ken's modern style. We did have to sneak the cats in because we didn't want to ask if they were pet friendly and get rejected at 11 p.m. Key to sneaking - find a side door and move everything back and forth through that door. Try to avoid locking yourself out of said side door while your cat is in the stairwell (at least she was in her cage!)

Ken woke early and got us coffee and breakfast and worked like a mad man on a client project until 30 minutes or so AFTER our late check-out time while I got our "rig" packed and ready to go.

Day 2: Monday, May 12
FJ Odometer start: 114,750
Start time: 2 p.m.
Travel path:  Ranch Cucamonga/Ontario Aloft Hotel to Surprise AZ Ah So Restaurant/Tami's house

After a stressful start to the day with the competing hotel check out and client project deadlines, we were on the road again heading east towards the desert. About 30 minutes before takeoff, I tried a new kitty xanax approach that involved crushing it up and mixing in with cream cheese that she then licked from my finger - success!!

As we pushed through San Bernardino, I looked up at the mountains where I spent so many youthful happy days with my Memere and Pepere (French Canadian grand parents on my dad's side).

I was also nostalgic driving into the Palm Desert area, appreciating the changes like the huge casino and many wind turbines where there used to be fields of oil pumps. I though it fitting this week  to be driving through this place which is the earliest I can remember living, the place where I picture my mother whose birthday was the 9th. I am almost 20 years older than she was when she died so sometimes I feel like I need to live enough for two. I guess driving to Guatemala with your husband and two cats qualifies.

We arrived at Ah So Restaurant about 7:45 and it was so good to see my youngest sister Tami and her beautiful family. Her son Dylan is such a sweet boy, and gaining confidence each time I see him. Her daughter Lexi, now a JUNIOR in high school, just got her braces off and is a beauty inside and out with brains to boot. Tami's husband Richard is gentle and kind and a real sweetheart. With Tami as the youngest, I think all of us girls have felt a little protective of her over the years, so it was quite a shift for me to see that she doesn't need that from us anymore, probably hasn't for a long time but as the oldest born it's hard to get over that role. This time, she took care of us, insisting that we not try to drive through to Tucson after dinner and instead stay at her place, which we happily did.

Day 3: Tuesday, May 13
FJ Odometer start: 115,170
Start time: 2 p.m.
Travel path:  Tami's house to Ken's Parents house in Tucson

We left Tami's house about 9 a.m., with everyone but Dylan off to work and school. Apparently he was home "sick," but maybe just maybe he wanted to hang out a little more. :-)

After grabbing some coffee and unexpected east-coast style bagels, we were headed for Tucson. Being a California girl, I had thought of Phoenix and Tucson as a lot closer than they actually are.

Well, perhaps it just seemed longer because of the route we took.... depending on who you talk to, it was either the driver's fault (me) or the navigator's fault (Ken) but we ended up driving through Tucson to the next town of Vail, AZ - not to be confused with the beautiful town of the same name in Colorado. While that may sound hard to do, the area where Ken's parents live is beyond the city of Tucson....just not THAT far beyond. By the time we figured it out, we were being pushed into a one-lane merge as a result of road construction and no exits to be seen.

To add insult to injury, I was hungry and had to go to the bathroom but put it off thinking I could wait until we got to the Hobbs. Now I was stuck in a non-moving vehicle feeling pretty ticked that my husband couldn't admit he was of course the one responsible for getting off track .;-) Just as all was heading south, a dirt "path" appeared between the two directions of the freeway and at the risk of what in California would have been an expensive ticket, I took it.

Thirty minutes later, Ken and I sat down in Jan's kitchen for the best sandwich/salad lunch ever. Let's hope that's the worst thing that happens on the road, right?

Here'a fun bunny video from the golf course outside their home in Tucson. You don't think of the desert as having much to offer in terms of wildlife, but there is a ton right now to see just off the back porch. The cats are really enjoying watch the birds from our bedroom window.

Yes, that's Jan at the end of the video asking if I want some wine...;-)

Oh, and here's the "rig" with our trailer and quad behind. If you see this on the road, watch out.

Limbo Lull

Not much to report except that I am NOT cut out for limbo! It is incredibly difficult for me to make a decision to do something and then wait, and wait, and wait to actually make it happen. It's sort of like that feeling you have when you've decided to leave a job and given notice, but you still have that dreaded two weeks to get through!

Add to that the fact we are living in our house with basically our desks, our bedroom, and kitchen because we've sold or given away most of our belongings and you get the idea. I had no idea how much impact my immediate environment has on me - very humbling to struggle like this with something that I would have considered very superficial. What a growth opportunity!

It's also been tough because of all that has to get done to be ready to go - from a heavy volume of client work, changing contact information for everything, emptying the house, and organizing our lives to be run from abroad. There's good news to report on that front - we are hiring a part time office manager to run things from Sacramento while we travel, so that should help our level of concern and stress while we're away.

We are also filing our taxes for our first full year as a business and wow, it's humbling to see all that we accomplished - quite honestly beyond my wildest dreams. I wrote an article about how much I will actually enjoying writing a large check to the IRS.

So on all fronts, it all seems to be coming together....just way more slowly than this girl would prefer. I am a firm believer though that it all happens in the time that it should. With the extra couple of months we had more opportunity to spend time with family and friends, develop new professional relationships, and set a great foundation for our journey.

I am sooo looking forward to posting more exciting stuff once we get on the road in early May!

The deadline pushed again!

Not sure if this is a law of nature, but it seems now that we are serious about leaving town, now that we are making the necessary plans to change our lives completely, the universe seems to have taken notice. Almost as if we were projecting a marketing message of "get us while you can!" we have been getting business....well, like nobody's business!

We can certainly continue to do the actual work from the road, but in some cases, "onboarding" a new client is better done in person.

Strangely enough, this is all happening around the same time that the two of us are really not all that concerned about getting new business, more concerned with our plans to travel full-time....coincidence? I don't believe in those.

So, for those keeping track, we have made some progress:

• We haves sold or donated nearly everything in our home - of course, this happened BEFORE we decided to postpone our trip, so we are now camping in our home
• We sold our Honda, but thank goodness not our Juke so I still have a vehicle until we leave, which is now estimated at late April/Early May
• We bought  our Guatemala vehicle! We got a great deal on an FJ cruiser that we will be driving down through Mexico
• My dear friends Kate, Trent, and Daniel threw us a going away party which of course devolved into tearful exclamations of love
• We now have some extra family time and am using it to run a "Run or Dye" 5k this weekend and get away to Sea Ranch together
• Lots of folks have pledged to come visit us, and we are seriously looking forward to sharing our paradise with as many people as possible- come visit

Feels like forever since we made the decision to head out, but I know we are taking the wise path in tying up our loose ends before we go and setting ourselves up to travel as long as possible.Sometimes its just hard being a responsible adult. ;-)

Vehicles We're Selling

Hi all,
Once I posted our moving sale on fb, I got a lot of questions about specific items. Figured this would be an easy way to get info about the vehicles we are selling. I'll add the miles in the next couple of days.

2008 Civic Hybrid - Asking Price $10,000

Great mileage, love this little car!
link to general info

2011 Nissan Juke - Asking Price $14,500

love, love love this small sporty SUV and sad to leave it behind
link to general info

2008 Kymco Xciting Scooter - Asking Price $2,500

Very low miles
Garaged much of the time
Link to general info

2008 Kymco Quad - Asking price $1,200 inc trailer

Well used, great work and fun quad, pretty powerful, also comes with a trailer.
Link to general info

Our Pacific Grove Workcation

After scheduling a client meeting near California's Central Coast on a Friday afternoon, Ken and I decided to make it the start of a weekend getaway - a belated birthday trip since I missed Ken's bday earlier in the month while at conference. We both had work we needed to get done for clients over the weekend, but we enjoy doing that work in the most pleasant places possible - hence, workcation!

The district office where the meeting was being held was precious, reminded me so much of my office with the Rio Linda School District - an abandoned wing of an elementary school where I could still hear the sounds of laughter and fun nearby. The meeting was quite honestly way too fun to be what I do for a living. I knew the superintendent was a good guy, and meeting the two board members to go over our project plan for a survey was a blast - super neat people who were smart, articulate, fun.

After a great meeting and agreeing to a bunch of deliverables before the end of the weekend, we set off for the Lighthouse Lodge and Cottages in Pacific Grove, near the top of Point Pinos south of Monterey.


The lodge is about a block away from the Point Pinos Lighthouse, the oldest continuous working lighthouse in the U.S. Even still has it's original lens.

It's even closer to the Port Pinos cememtary, in fact our room balcony looked out onto it. If you look in the distance you can see four deer - apparently they like to hang out there. Didn't bother me too much, except for my usual zombie shelter assessment (every time I go somewhere, I can't help but imagine how I would get away from the zombies.) Depending on the type of zombie - ie, something that brings the long-dead back to life, it could get hairy. ;-)

 

I think the deer coming to our balcony and Ken feeding them popcorn more than made up for the potential zombie risk. See that cutie licking it's lips? They really liked the popcorn.

Friday night we grabbed dinner at Montrio Cafe in Montery. We spent the day Saturday kicking around Pacific Grove, doing some work from a coffee shop and exploring the cute shops and restaurants. The weather, as you can see, was pretty amazing.

And Sunday morning we spent at the beach just down the street - a very cool spot that is a rugged scraggle of rock that extends out into the ocean and you can see the coastline for miles in either direction. Here are some of my favorite photos of the point:

 Very cool groups of crabs hanging out on the sunny rocks.

Here's a link to a video of the crabs and ocean...note to self, don't turn the camera phone sideways...

We drove home Sunday afternoon, stopping for a wonderful farm stand just outside of Monterey, and picked up all kinds of yummy, very inexpensive produce. 

We also stopped to see an old college friend of Ken's who started the Santa Cruz Pasta Factory. He gave a us a private tour of the place and loaded us up with some fantastic pasta and sauces. Needless to say, we won't be hungry any time soon. ;-) 

Gratitude 365 1.4.14

Kaia Girls
Today was the kickoff for the next Kaia workout session,  a gathering of more than a hundred beautiful, determined women, and I got to debut the video I created about the program. Such a great response, very validating! The Kaia girl in this photo was making a "handbag"- a 20 pound kettle bell for use in our class. Too fun!